RubberStampingDiva.com

…or should that be life-’nine’?  

Did you know that today: 9/9/09 is the 252nd day of the year?  When added together, those three digits equal….9!  This is the last time there will be single digits in the month, day and year for the next 1001 years!

How will you mark this once in a lifetime occurrence?

A girl’s gotta have skills and I’ve been expanding mine to include creating widgets, banners and for all you fans of bling…virtual glitter:  

My sister bloggers out there will understand just how flippin’ cool this little bit of coding is and why I felt the need to post it  Now back to my Craft Table (IRL)!

I’m really starting to feel the Christmas Crunch over here and no, it’s not the dried out Bermuda grass of my lawn!  Between gifts for teachers, coaches, neighbors, and friends….and that’s just my kids!!!  I was also put in charge of the Middle School Christmas Party at the last minute!  As in, for the ENTIRE Middle School!!!  YIKES!  Normally, I stamp all the goodies that leave my home but this year, this Diva has got to cut some corners…just to save her sanity!  I was cleaning out some computer files last week and I came across this snowman graphic that I had downloaded aeons ago and today I decided I would run off a couple of sheets and my daughters could make these for their friends at school, teammates, etc.  The graphic was really cute enough to use alone…but we added a strip of torn plaid, fabric as a scarf (you can make a ton of scarves for 99 cents worth of fabric!) and we raided our orphaned sock basket to make colorful hats.  Simply roll the cuff over 2-3 times for the brim, tie with some yarn, trim off the toe and cut slits down to the yarn to make the funky fringe!  They look even cuter once they’ve been stretched a few times.  *Note:  It helps to anchor the hat with a glue dot on the back.

Now, if you’re looking for a last minute gifty for the whole class or for everyone in your office, CLICK HERE for a PDF version of the wrapper (each sheet makes 2 snowmen…aren’t I thrifty?), grab a box or 2 of candy bars and start wrapping!

Happy Holidays!

Update: After looking at St. Nick ALL night last night, I decided he needed to be ‘tweaked’….

I lowered the brim of his hat (the Word Window Punch) and changed the flower/pom-pom on his hat to a smaller flower….I think I like him better now, but the original is below for you to decide…Cheers!

 I can’t imagine where this came from…I swear I was just trying to clean up my stamping area when this cute little elf just ‘popped’ into my head!  Well, it is NOT the time of year to say ‘no’ to Santa…so, I sat right down and whipped him up!  He is really just a basic Triangle Box (using a half sheet of cardstock cut to 4.25" x 11".)  His face is punch art (it’s hard to tell from the picture, but I did use dimensionals and some sponging to make his face "POP) and the twinkle in his eyes are dots of White Gel Pen.  His belt is a strip of cardstock cut to slip through a soda can pop-top!  Can’t you just see this Jolly Ol’ Elf filled with little goodies and hanging from YOUR tree???  Here’s the original:

*I originally wrote this Holiday Card Making Tip Sheet last year and published it here on my blog in October.  Due to overwhelming requests, I am re-printing it.  I hope everyone finds it as helpful this year, as they did last year…Happy Holidays!!!*

Holiday card making doesn’t have to be a huge production…with a little planning you can add your personal touch to the holidays and show all those around you just how much you care. Here is a basic time line to help make the process easier, whether you’re making 10 cards or 100 (keep in mind this could also apply to invitations for parties, weddings & showers!)

Things to Consider: • Crafter know thyself! This should be a stress reducing not a stress inducing activity! If making holiday cards is going to drive you to start popping bourbon balls, then just don’t do it! • Keep it simple! The more cards you make the easier they should be. Adding one extra step when you’re making 5 cards is no biggie…but when you’re making 50, it adds hours to the process! Try to keep each card to less then 7 steps. • Don’t fret that your cards are too simple…get the basic design done and leave a minor embellishment to add if time permits….try not to sweat the small stuff! • Work assembly-line style, do all the cutting, then all the punching, all the coloring, then all the gluing, etc. This not only speeds the process but breaks it into smaller, more manageable chunks. • Delegate! Even Santa has helpers…have the kids stamp envelopes and ask your husband to print out address labels…everyone can pitch in! • Don’t wait for huge chunks of free time to work on this project (it may never come along!) Simply gather all the supplies in one area or in one container (to avoid search & rescue missions) and be ready to go on a moments notice. You can accomplish quite a bit in the 15 minutes it takes for water to boil or while your on hold with the insurance company! Watching T.V. is another ideal time to sit and work on a portion of your cards….little by little you can get them done! • Finally, remember that every card doesn’t have to be identical. Just as each of your friends is unique, so should their card be….a unique reflection of your heartfelt feelings for them.

*Tip: Before pre-cutting or punching cardstock, make a sample!  Sometimes something that looked perfect in your head or worked in your imagination, doesn’t work out in the real world!  Better to know that ahead of time and of course, ALWAYS measure TWICE, cut once!  (Thank you Deb Bryson for bringing up this very important point…been there, done that, NOT fun   )

•  6-8 Weeks Prior to the Event: • Make a card list (or two! Some crafters make cards only for family members or close friends to cut down on the work load) • Decide on a basic design (including size, color, and sentiment….check back here for class dates and times.) • Compare your supplies on hand to your list of supplies needed • Make a list of supplies to purchase and contact your friendly Stampin’ Up!® Demonstrator. Don’t forget extra adhesive…now is not the time to run out!

• 4-5 Weeks Prior: • Purchase supplies including envelopes, address labels and postage • Arrange supplies in one area or container so everything can be accessed quickly and easily as time permits • Start creating your cards, working assembly-line style • Address and stamp envelopes (you can save time here by using the computer)
• 2-3 Weeks Prior: • Finish creating cards (now is the time to add those additional embellishments to certain cards to personalize them) • Double check these against your original list as you slip your cards into the envelopes • Mail your cards Now sit back and relax with a steaming cup of cocoa and just enjoy the holiday season…you deserve it!

To print a PDF version of these tips, click here: Cards by the Carton Tip Sheet

 NOTE: This was re-edited on November 20, 2008

How’s this for a TALL order: make a card that’s masculine enough for a growing boy but sincere/sweet enough for his First Communion.

The key here was KISS: Keep It Simple, Stamper!  I used some retired Wintergreen DSP as the background (and to decorate the envie!) and used pastels to color the image.  The greeting was hand-written and the ribbon is Navy grosgrain tied with a faux knot. 

I have a real love/hate relationship with gift cards…while I love, love, love the convenience of grabbing a card for someone (and letting THEM choose the ideal gift)…I hate the impersonal feel of giving a GC…the almost apologetic look that comes over my face upon presenting someone with "just" an envelope.

My solution to this dilemma?  Make the packaging FUN!  Or…in this case FUNKY!  I used up leftover DSP from the holidays (it’s just too pretty NOT to use!) and added one of my Spirelli embellishments (what did I ever do before these?!?!)  The Spirelli pattern is actually a combination of 2…one done right over the other…this gives the Spirelli more depth and makes it look more complex.  Love the look and want to learn how?  Check out my PDF tutorial HERE or you can view the video tutorial HERE!

Another card from my Shoebox Swap…This card makes a splash with it’s citrus-y color combination, flower accent and a dash of ribbon…the scallop at the bottom of the Pink Passion layer not only accents the polka dot DSP but was a cinch to make using SU!’s slot punch repeatedly across the bottom of the cardstock.  What do I love most about this card?  The layout!  It’s graphic and can easily be used with almost any stamp set…Thank you Shelia, for sharing!

I attended a Shoebox Swap on Monday with some of my sister Stamp Vamps and one of the projects we did was a card featuring the Cloisonne Technique. This was a case of seeing is believing…because up till this point I hadn’t seen a project I liked well enough to duplicate using this sometimes time consuming technique. Then fate stepped in and my own talented downline, Gail (of Gail Stamps) shared this great card using the Cloisonne technique and an eye catching color combination that not only excited me…it made me WANT to take the time do this card! Thanks, Gail! She was kind enough to include an instruction sheet on her site: http://www.gailstamps.com/2008/01/02/cloisonne-technique-card/ for those of you wanting to try this technique for yourselves…check it out!

Not very stamping related I’m afraid, but bear with me for a minute. You see, my good buddy and occasional muse, MJ Weston has gone and “tagged” me tonight and well, “mature me” took a look at the dining room table covered in stamping supplies (another creative bender, I’m afraid) and the computer desk covered in bright orange paper (Trunk-or-Treat forms….yeah, I’m in charge of that AGAIN this year!) and the piles of laundry in the garage and said, “Ahhhhh, don’t EVEN think about it, Girly! You’ve got plenty to do around here….(blah, blah, blah!) After that “irresponsible/fun-loving me just tuned her out…She can be SUCH a drag sometimes! So, I plopped my little self down (and yes, I am getting littler…it’s official…according to the doctor today I’ve lost 23 pounds!!! Yipppeee!!!) and started playing TAG.

Here’s the ’sitch (that’s situation for any of you who don’t happen to watch Kim Possible on Disney Channel with your ‘tween every week): MJ tagged me (thanks, Doll! You know I’m always ready to play!) and Kristina tagged her and she was tagged by- Stacey of “The Queen’s Creations” who was tagged by Erin at Inky Smiles who was tagged by Mary Demuth (www.relevantblog.blogspot.com) who originally started the game. Basically, it’s an experiment to see how many degrees we can separate (kind of like Kevin Bacon, only it’s blog relevant). How many people can one blog potentially reach? What we do is list out 10, 20 and 30 years ago and what we were doing at that time. Then you “tag” some other bloggers and go back and comment on Relevant Blog and let her know.
SOOOO here goes-

• 10 years ago: Wow! That is quite a busy time….Chris (DH), Alyssa (DD) and I had moved from our condo in Safety Harbor, Florida to our current home in Tarpon Springs back in April (while I was 7 months pregnant!) and we are still unpacking and getting settled. Kira was born in July so now she’s 3 months old. I have been planning Kira’s baptism, taking the girls to playgroup and have just begun a new addiction – scrapbooking!
• 20 years ago: My senior year of high school at Countryside High…active in Drama Club and Chorus…I have a part in EVERY production this year (are you surprised?) I have a car and a PTJ (part time job) so my time is my own as long as my grades are good…took my SATs, applied to colleges…I’m going to football games and Prom and I’m active in my Youth Group….basically, it’s a very good year!

• 30 years ago: YIKES! Only 7 years old…just moved to Florida from Wisconsin last year! Spend my days going to Sandy Lane Elementary, riding my bike, going to the movies ( I’ve gone to see Star Wars 5 times, already!)….and this year I think I’ll be Princess Leia for Halloween!

Now, The question is WHO to tag? Well….I’ll tag…..

Amanda Coughlin (She’s usually in the mood to play!)

Amy Celona (Will she be too busy to come out and play????)

Kimberly Morris (Is it still snowing???)

Vicki Allgaier (Come out & play, Vicki!)

Rebecca Mayse (’Becca…Where are you???)